Bound & Broken
by The Wrider
Summary: When Juliana first phased with her cousin, Meg, both joined the all-female Portuguese Pack. Alas, she also found that her Alpha–Octavia–had imprinted on her father, Marc. This brought on a series of events. Jules' parents are now divorced, Octavia is her stepmother; she's been forced to move to Washington and leave her dismayed mum in Watauga. Now, she's imprinted on Paul Lahote.


**Juliana Omeira Ross  
Chapter One: Bound**

* * *

"Juliana, are you ready for school?" My stepmother, Octavia Ross, called from the downstairs kitchen.

I growled at the sound of that wretched witch's voice. Megara Scott, my best friend and cousin, sighed when she heard the animalistic rumble erupt from my plum lips. "Sometimes, I _really_ want to slap that bitch in the face," I remarked bitterly, throwing my tattered backpack over one shoulder and not bothering to check myself in the mirror.

I already knew I looked like a dazzling goddess who pampered herself senseless with beauty supplies. It came with the stupid territory of being a descendant of a feature flawless vampire. No matter how much I downplayed myself, I knew I was striking to the mortal eye. I was always ordinary looking, with commonplace features and a normal body stature...until my family genes kicked in at adolescence and my appearance suddenly _morphed_.

"She thinks she's my mother just because she took the place of Mum in my dad's eyes," I grumbled.

Meg shot me a look of warning. "Be quiet, Jules! She'll hear us from up here."

"Oh, who gives?" I gave my new, polished bedroom door an icy glance. "She can hear my thoughts loud and clear whenever I shift."

Meg sighed miserably again, something she'd do quite often now. "Hey, don't take it all out on Tav."

I gave Megara an incredulous look. "How can I not? She's to blame for all of this! She broke up my family, sent us all to this icy hellhole and now we have to deal with _five _people living in our new house. Dad rarely talks to me anymore...and he was the whole reason why I agreed to moving away from Mum in Mexico."

'Tav' was my stepmother's brainless nickname because she always complained about despising the name _Octavia_. Though, she was the eighth female Alpha in her rotten family-tree and Octavia did mean eight in Latin, so it made sense that her parents decided to christen her Octavia Grace Devora.

My middle name, however, was _Omeira_–a Latin variant of Omega–which entirely explained my place in Watauga, North Carolina's new personal pack of dogs. Or 'Emalar,' as Octavia called us, which is Portuguese (my mother's and stepmother's origin) for 'pack.'

I was the Omega of a snarky, sneaky and Spanish-speaking group of werewolves.

Octavia was blessed with a Portuguese accent that allured all men, while the others in her Emalar sounded purely American except, of course, for me because of my childhood in Mexico with my parents. When I was born, my mother–who'd met Dad after migrating to America from Portugal with her relatives, as well as Octavia Devora–moved to Mexico to be with my father, where he originated from.

I'd grown up in Mexico and moving to this cold, cloudy climate was killing me! When I shifted, my family moved to Watauga in North Carolina to be with my Alpha, who'd founded her Emalar there. Now, Octavia had moved us to Neah Bay. I didn't have the slightest bit of North American decent, save the miniscule portion of Native American that comes from my mother's Portuguese side.

Apparently, it is the Native American blood that changes us into wolves and our Portuguese female ancestor's vampire enhancements which make us inhumanly attractive when we start the metaphases of human to shape-shifter. Vampire blood also gives us individual powers.

For example, Octavia can read auras. Charlotte, my second-in-command, can create physical barriers with her mind. The Quileute gene give us agility, endurance and strength in wolf form while we have inhuman speed, force and the prominent charms of a vampire in human form.

Megara and I had yet to find our individual gifts in the Emalar.

We didn't understand how a bluntly frozen vampire became pregnant or how a werewolf fought the internal instincts of shredding her to bits. However, Octavia intended to find out once we moved to Neah Bay – a few miles drive from La Push, Washington, the home of the Quileute spirit warriors and shape-shifters.

My friend groaned, throwing her head back in frustration. "We've had this conversation a _million_ times, Jules!"

"And it continues to baffle me how you don't agree," I snapped with narrowed eyes.

Meg returned my heated glare and hissed, "Don't look at me like that! We're all in the same boat, Juliana. You don't think I miss my mum and my family? Moving here for our Emalar was a big sacrifice for both of our parents. But Octavia knows what's best and the fact that _your_ mum, who thinks our Alpha is a home-wrecker, agrees with her is a pretty big thing."

"Octavia _is_ a home-wrecker," I snarled, glaring at my new bedroom door and fighting the pain which inflated my heart almost always. "She destroyed everything my mum ever loved about her life. She _hated_ Mexico...but she stayed for Dad, because she loved him."

Megara diverted her eyes from me and I knew she was mutely agreeing. "Jules, Tav never wanted a married man to be her Bounder...but, you know these things happen. Like with Charlie and Jackson, no one would've expected fate to pair _them_ together. Who knows, you might be next to find your Bounder?"

I growled at the word, a dark emotion circling the wreckage of my heart. "Huh, that'd be a mournful day," I muttered as Megara rose from my bed and heaved another sigh. The dictionary definition of bounder: _somebody, especially a man, who behaves in a dishonourable or morally unacceptable way. _

I found it ironic that a Bounder in _our_ books was, supposedly, entirely opposite. A Bounder is a soul-mate: someone who is perfectly compatible for a werewolf. The term _Bounder_ arose a few generations ago, when the Emalar then realised that they were literally bound to that single man – that one, ideal spirit who understands you unconditionally.

I'd only felt the bond of a Bounder and his wolf from Octavia and my second-in-command, Charlotte.

Charlotte was twenty-three when she found her Bounder and there was a mighty uproar because Jackson Uley was only nineteen at the time. Being away from him was excruciating, exhausting to the heart, but I'd only ever felt the memories of separation from Charlotte telepathically. Jackson and Charlotte were happily engaged by the time Megara and I joined the Emalar.

This Sunday, on First Beach in the Quileute Reservation a couple of miles away, Jack and Charlie were finally going to be wed after five years. Jackson Uley was Quileute – he, however, lived in North Carolina with his father, Joshua Uley, until moving to Neah Bay with Charlotte and his adopted daughter, Rose.

Jackson had invited the Quileute Elders and their children to attend the ceremony. Jackson's father, Joshua Uley, was going to be meet his three sons from La Push after nearly sixteen years...which I, personally, thought was destined for disaster.

Charlie was now twenty-nine-years-old and Octavia was going to be thirty this month. I was seventeen, making it almost two years of being stuck a werewolf, so the age range of women in my Emalar was pretty vast. Luckily, we wolves continued to age – only slowly, but it was still something to be glad of.

Octavia and Dad had been married for a nearly a year and they'd be celebrating their first anniversary in Port Angeles, where we'd all go for dinner. I think it was safe to admit that my dad was certainly happier with Octavia. Marcus & Octavia Ross were the _ideal couple_. Of course they were – my father was my Alpha's Bounder, which made their bond twice as strong.

Oh, Lord...why did it have to happen to _my_ family?

Yes, my parents had their problems and they had drifted apart a while ago, but they still loved each other and wished to be a family. Until my mother called Octavia urgently, begging her to come and calm me down when I first shifted. I'd been arguing with Mum about some stupid item of clothing I wanted to wear and I lost it, so I morphed into my monster.

Alas, when Octavia walked onto the scene that day, she was totally prepared and composed. She said everything I needed to hear and, for a moment, I really liked my Alpha. But that only lasted for about half an hour because–before I knew it–my dad walked into the house, greeted my Alpha and suddenly she was staring into his amber brown eyes with an awe-struck, panic-stricken look.

"Come on, Jules, let's just go to school," Meg gently ushered me out of my room, the shell I scuttled into whenever I was overwhelmed by all of this. In four whole years, I'd only ever cried in the confines of my own four walls and I proudly intended on keeping it that way. If I crumbled, it would be in the presence of only myself.

Three werewolves were attending Neah Bay High School: Megara, Nina–Octavia's little sister–and myself. Rose Uley, another werewolf in my Emalar and the adopted daughter of Jackson and Charlotte, would be attending La Push High on the Reservation. The three others in my Emalar had graduated a while ago.

It was a half an hour's drive away and Dad was going to be driving us, so we had to be in the car by 6:50am. Dad used worked as Mexico's National Natural Landmarks supervisor and I think he wished to continue his job as a National Parks Manager/Guide here in Washington. It was good having him out in the forest daily because he could keep a distant eye on us while we hunted for invading vampires.

While Megara and I left my room, Nina Devora strutted out of the upstairs bathroom with a dazzling and confident grin that made her as radiant as light itself. Nina was the brightest star in our sky because she made the hardworking effort of adding a touch more brilliance to her angelic appearance.

Like all of the Emalar; Nina had smooth, bronze skin and teak-brown eyes, accentuated by thick lashes, and full lips the colour of plums. We were all reasonably tall for women and we had curves similar to that of Aphrodite's. It was amazing what a little vampire blood could do to the genetics of werewolf women!

My Emalar sisters were all gorgeous, but it was our hair that made each individual. Some had auburn corkscrew curls, while others had dead-straight and jet-black hair. My lengthy locks were set right in the middle of the range. It reached my waist and fell in big, chestnut curls with red through golden highlights. Some would label me lucky to have such striking features; but I'd just call myself an ordinary descendant of a werewolf and a vampire.

It was painful to admit that I resembled my stepmother more than my own biological mother.

"What's up, Nine?" I greeted with a dull expression, giving her an uncharismatic glance.

Nina's nickname was Nine, since Octavia was the eighth female shape-shifter and Nina was the ninth in her family. While Octavia liked her nickname, Nina abhorred hers and her faultless features would always screw up like a baby's whenever she heard it. Ugh, I _still_ couldn't believe she was my age! Seriously, Nina needed to grow up and I'd always remind her of that.

Nina heaved a dramatic sigh; different to those Megara had a habit of doing whenever I was being difficult. "Oh, Juliana, must you constantly call me _Nine_ all the time?"

"And that rhymes," I remarked with a smirk as the three of us walked downstairs. My home in Mexico never had stairs, so I was still learning to be graceful upon them like Nina and Megara were.

Nina raised her eyebrows disapprovingly, shaking her head as if I were too childish to deal with this morning. "So," She began a new, superficial subject. "What are we going to do at school, girls? Relax on our first day or get down to the social game of the season."

"I'm probably going to stick with learning, Nina. School's _initial_ purpose," Meg stated and I chuckled.

"Megara, you're such a nerd!" Nina laughed, making a girly gesture that made me grimace. "What about you, Jules? What way are you going to go? Do you want to hang out at lunch?"

I shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, I had a pretty scheduled day, Nine. Beat up a few jerks, interrupt some teachers, stick gum in some annoying brat's hair and end my day with a relaxing detention."

Nina laughed with a sickly-sweet smile. "Juliana, you'd never hurt a fly, even the annoying ones."

"Well, this year I brought a _swatter_ with me," I sarcastically muttered under my breath as we entered the large kitchen, which stunk of brewed coffee and burnt toast. When my eyes met the scene before me, my entire snarky attitude shrivelled up and I was left cringing, wishing I'd stayed in the shell of my bedroom.

Octavia and Dad were intimately pressed up against the bench, sharing a very passionate kiss that made my stomach churn. One thing I'd appreciated about Octavia was that she'd always telepathically shield me from disturbing fantasies or memories of my father and her. Alas, no one could shield me from the ultimate reality and discovering my father kissing another woman still sent my mind spiralling.

I fought the tears, those shameful indications that my heart had shattered a hundred times over.

Megara tensed beside me and she apprehensively watched my expression disintegrate into nothing but hurt and misery. Even Nina glanced at me pitifully and she was the little sister of the woman who was undoubtedly blissful in my father's arms. Nausea gripped me tight and squeezed until I was choking for air.

When a gagging cough erupted from my lips, Dad and Tav tore away from each other and she spun around in lightning speed. Dad was the first to meet my gaze and guilt immediately grazed his–otherwise love intoxicated–expression. Tav's lips became a thin line, as if she was trying to hide the evidence of kissing my father.

I glared at my dad instinctively. When I'd agreed to move with my Alpha, I promised myself that I'd stop blaming Tav and Dad for me and my mother's hurt. But the fiery spite that built up in my lungs was hard to restrain from releasing in hateful looks. I couldn't stop myself from balling my hands, trying to channel my anger into my fists.

"Hey, girls. How did you...sleep?" Dad greeted with an awkward smile.

"Fine, thanks, Uncle Marcus," Megara sent my dad a gentle expression, as if to say that I'd be fine and she'd take care of me when we went to school. Even though Dad was not legally Megara's uncle anymore, she still referred to him as Uncle.

"Good," Dad nodded, not moving his gaze from my eyes, which were now guarded and composed.

I gave the happy couple a forced smile and Octavia cleared her throat. "Uh, do you want me to make you girls something to eat?"

I shook my head curtly while Nina nodded eagerly and skipped forward, cheerful as if nothing had happened. Megara audibly gulped, keeping her wary eyes on me before giving Tav a bright smile, shielding her uneasy emotions, and nodding. "Sure. Thanks, Tav," Meg swung her arm around my shoulders and ushered me forward. After pulling me to the breakfast table, I rigidly sat down next to Megara.

As we patiently sat at the table, Octavia began serving toast and cereal while Dad poured coffee, milk and juice for everyone. While Nina excitedly babbled on about some dream she'd experienced last night, my eyes shifted back to Octavia and Dad and I observed them working together in the kitchen.

They seemed so aware of each other. So in tune, they made it hard to believe they'd been with anyone before each other. It made me angry in the strangest of ways. When Mum and Dad were together, they were _never_ in step. Together, they were amusingly clumsy and could never work as a team or in a system. Octavia and Dad were so adjusted that they made it look like a dance or some fine art.

I hated that. I hated them. I hated this.

I hated everything about this stupid living situation. I'd been forced to move away from my depressed mother in North Carolina because my Alpha wanted to research the people of La Push and Makah Bay, so she decides to pick up and move to Washington with her new, doting husband. And what choice do her Emalar have? We _must_ follow and now I'm stuck in a house occupied by four werewolves!

Fortunately, Charlotte had her own place with Jackson and their werewolf daughter, Rose Uley.

Octavia, Nina, Megara and I lived together because we are related...and only for that reason. Personally, I'd rather be staying with our Emalar's mad, partying twins–Sonja and Jacinta–who moved back in with their older sister, Kimberly Connweller, after travelling to Mexico and staying with us for a while in North Carolina. The twins were twenty and lived in Makah Bay with Kim and her boyfriend, Jared Cameron.

So, ultimately, I was stuck here.

Stuck here, watching my teenage years pass by in a blur of anger and boredom and resentment.

* * *

"Are you excited, girls?" Dad queried, trying to make humble chitchat, keeping his eyes on the road to Neah Bay High.

"Yes," Nina immediately chirped. "I've only ever been homeschooled. I just know I'm going to become a social butterfly! It's going to be so fun, Marc."

Dad chuckled at his sister-in-law's cheerfulness. Glancing at me in the front seat, I felt his eyes burn into the side of my face for a moment's silence. I crossly turned away and looked out of the side window, watching the endless greenery blur by in contrast with the pelting rain. As it been for past two weeks, it was a grey day and I could hear the distant sound of roaring waves with my heightened senses.

"What about you, Meg? Jules, are you glad to have a change of scenery?" His voice fell wary and the caution radiating from him was insulting. I shifted and shot my father a cold glower_. I'm not going to snap like a twig, you know!_ I thought with a scowl.

"I think Neah Bay is really nice, Uncle Marcus. The greenery is so...um, _green_," Meg stated flatly, obviously averting an argument by saying what Dad wanted to hear.

Shifting my gaze back to the window, I felt Dad's eyes on me again. "Juliana," His voice summoned me as if I was miles away. "Do you like Neah Bay?"

"I guess," I grumbled, shrugging my shoulders.

"You don't like it?" Dad asked in gentle concern. "Because it's fine if you don't, Ju-"

My head snapped back to face my father angrily. "No, it _isn't_ fine if I don't like it here," I snapped.

"Juliana," Dad began sadly, "I know you think Neah Bay isn't what you imagined to be home. But...Tav is close to reaching answers that we all need. To you, being a shape-shifter is a way of life that you're comfortable with. Though, there are billions of people who don't know of the supernatural world and Tav needs a solution to preserving your secret for good. Going to the route of your kind is the best way of doing that. She's doing this to protect all of you."

"Yeah, I didn't need the lecture," I growled under my breath.

"Maybe you didn't," Dad sighed. "But I have to make this clear to you _now_ before you do anything stupid."

"Like what?" I exclaimed incredulously. "Name _one_ thing I've done to jeopardise the Emalar? One thing, Dad!"

Dad shook his head. "I know you'd never try to hurt your sisters. I was just being hypothetical, Juliana."

"Yeah right," I muttered inaudibly, throwing my gaze back out the window, where my flaming glare would not burn anyone's skin. "Just stop talking to me, okay? I think it'd save everyone a lot of screaming power."

"Jules," Dad pleaded. "I'm your father and I...I love you...and I don't want you to hurt anymore. The mistakes I've made were-"

"Stop!" I groaned, throwing my hand up to halt his apologetic words. "I've heard this sop story one hundred and one times already. Dad...I get it. You had an affair with Tav, you regret it and you hope to make it up to me and Mum someday. Did you ever think that continuing to surface all of this crap will just make things worse?"

Dad let out a huff but complied with my impatience and remained silent for the rest of the trip, which lasted another twenty uncomfortable minutes. The girls in the back hadn't made a peep until Dad parked in a small lot and they gave their awkward farewells whilst I stormed out of the car without so much as a departing glance.

* * *

I rushed around a brick building's corner and desperately tried to get some distance between my father and I. I felt tears threaten my eyelashes and I blinked rapidly, frantic to flee the scene. My senses hinted that my Emalar sisters were rushing hastily, their heartbeats roaring with adrenaline as they sprinted after me. I heard their feet beat against the gravel pathway which led to another heap of unfamiliar buildings.

I doubted many school buildings would be open, it was only 7:20 after all and most students would probably pour in at 7:45am. A few students were scattered along the place, glancing at me nosily as I bustled past. I didn't want to speak to either Megara or Nina, in fear tears would come if I tried sharing my feelings. My fast pace slowed once my eyes latched onto the word **Library** above a small building with sliding doors and cement stairs.

_The library will surely be open,_ I thought to myself and my anxiety settled once I neared the steps. Biting my lip, I reached the sliding doors and quietly pushed them open. The distinctive scent of books hit me when I stepped onto the carpeted floor. My mother was a librarian, and I was constantly helping her file through books, so the familiar aroma of shelves filled with old novels calmed my nerves.

The library seemed fairly empty but, when I spotted an elderly woman with silver hair standing behind a counter opposite me, I presumed to go to her first. Unsure of what to ask, I approached her slowly and interrupted her busy scanning of books by clearing my throat. Her eyes, framed with thick glasses, immediately shot up to meet mine and she gave me an instant smile.

"Oh...hello, dear. I'm Mrs. Brown, the librarian and the new tutoring administrator," She gestured to herself before pointing at me. "You must be the early morning tutor. Hailey Thomason, isn't it? We've never met because I've actually just started working at Neah Bay High. It's nice to meet you. Thank-you for coming at such an early time, dear, your literacy scholar will really appreciate this."

"What?" I asked with a frown and let out a nervous laugh. "Oh...no. I'm-"

The woman swiftly left her counter and scanner and approached me with an ongoing smile. Placing her hand on my shoulder, she interrupted, "He's right in that alcove, so you have a little privacy. I must admit, Mr. Lahote is a little embarrassed about being tutored...but it is in his father's best interests that he keeps his grades up. I guess that's why he transferred him from La Push High to Neah Bay...we have a better reputation, you see. But don't tell anyone I told you that!" She laughed, shaking her head.

"Mrs. Brown," I cut off the rambling, gossiping librarian and put my hands up in a calming gesture. "I'm sorry...but-"

"Oh, yes, yes, you need to work with Mr. Lahote before class comes," As the woman babbled, I found she was leading me to into a small area with a table, two chairs, pencils, a few novels and before I could breathe a word, she continued: "Oh, where is he? Mr. Lahote, your tutor's here, sweetheart!"

Behind a lengthy bookcase, a tall figure loomed. "Coming," A deep grumbled from behind the stacks of novels.

"Oh, come on. Miss Thomason doesn't have all day," Mrs. Brown huffed and then gave me a reassuring smile before saying, "He's probably just trying to find a book to borrow from the library. His father makes him get one each week and, if he doesn't finish it within that week, he doesn't get his allowance. I wish I'd done that with _my_ kids. Isn't that smart, Hailey?"

"Um...it sounds fairly reasonable to me," I agreed with a small smile.

"Well, it's not. I haven't gotten allowance from Dad in ages," A husky, unsatisfied voice remarked and a tall, muscular boy emerged from behind the bookshelf with a novel in hand. Lahote had a bitter, disinterested look on his face until his eyes locked with mine and I gasped.

My whole world shifted and I was his in a matter of moments.

* * *

**A/N: This idea had been floating throughout my mind for a while now. **


End file.
